Henry A. Matis was the newly returned president of the Finnish Mission when he spoke in the April 1955 General Conference.

President McKay, President Richards, President Clark, President Smith, fellow brethren of the Priesthood, I am privileged to be with you this evening. I bring you greetings from Finland, as we would say — “Terveisia lahetyssaarnajilta ja jasenilta Suomen lahetyskentalta” — or greetings from the missionaries, and members of the Finnish Mission.

I am appreciative, brethren, being the weakest of the weak, of standing before you and testifying to the goodness of our Heavenly Father to me in his work of the ministry. I am appreciative, also, of the opportunity that we have had of serving him, particularly in the country of Finland.

As a great missionary in the Book of Mormon, the Prophet Alma said, “O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!” (Alma 29:1.)

Brethren, I have had the wish of my heart, I have been a missionary. I have had the opportunity of crying repentance to the Finnish people. Possibly a little personal history would give you some background as to why I am appreciative of this opportunity, and of this blessing.

I was born near the borders of Utah in a little mining town called Telluride, Colorado. After finishing college, I went to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the Eastern States Mission, to hear the Gospel message. The Lord needed to prepare me, brethren, so that I could accept the truths of the Gospel. I bear testimony that he prepared me for the Gospel as well as that he prepared me to go to Finland. You see, it is unusual in that I am of Finnish descent. My father and mother were Finnish. They came to a land of promise not knowing about the Gospel. I was reared without the Gospel.

In 1904, Elder Francis M. Lyman dedicated the land of Finland to the preaching of the Gospel. Because there was no religious freedom at that time, very little proselyting was done, even in the Swedish language, which was universal at that time. However, the Lord blessed this little country, and in 1917 Finland gained its independence from Czarist Russia. In 1921 the Finns received their religious freedom. We know from history the Lord spared Finland, and in his wisdom and in his kindness, blessed that country so that it would receive the Gospel in its fullness, taught in the Finnish language.

It was under such circumstances, when the war-ridden but humble Finns thanked their God, our Heavenly Father, for their preservation, that Elder Ezra Taft Benson visited Finland during his tour of the European Missions in 1946. There, Elder Benson, accompanied by President Eben R. T. Blomquist of the Swedish Mission, in the little farming community of Larsmo in Northern Finland dedicated the land to the preaching of the Gospel, and particularly in the native Finnish tongue. After a very successful tour of the European missions, Elder Benson returned to his home and the Lord’s work in Zion. Early in the spring of the following year, Elder Ezra Taft Benson left this city by train to go to an eastern city on business. The Lord, in some miraculous way, caused that Elder Benson would get off the train to make a purchase and that the train would leave without him. Brethren, this was unusual, but what was more unusual about the circumstances was that President John K. Edmunds of the Chicago Stake asked me to meet Elder Benson at the airport. I did this, thanking my Heavenly Father for the opportunity of being of service, but Elder Benson, who was looking for someone to open the mission in Finland, observed that I was interested in that country and that I was of Finnish extraction. I am thankful for that small incident, because I bear testimony to you that it was arranged by our Heavenly Father so that my wife, I, and our family could go to Finland to serve him.

We have been in Finland seven years. It is difficult to compress seven years into the few minutes that I stand before you, but, brethren, I wish to bear testimony to you that our Heavenly Father’s spirit was with us during our time in the Finnish Mission. We have been proselyting among a sincere, humble people. The missionaries we have received have been the best in the Church and the Lord has sent them at a particular time to that mission that they might further his work there.

We enjoyed every minute of our mission. In fact, when we left Finland it was like leaving home. Also, when we left there were five hundred members, as well as eleven meeting places which were evidences of the Lord’s blessings to us.

Time in athletic Finland is computed either before the XV Olympic Games or after the Olympic games in 1952 which were held in Helsinki. By permission of the First Presidency, we in the Finnish Mission received permission to assist in these Olympic Games. We not only assisted the American officials and athletes, but we also had the opportunity to teach them the Gospel principles, to make the Church known to the leading athletes of the world. One event, however, overshadowed the Olympics in 1952, and that was the visit of our beloved leader, President David O. McKay. The Finns will never forget the visit of President David O. McKay, Sister McKay, and their party. We were grateful to have Sister McKay spend her seventy-fifth birthday in Finland, on John’s Day of “Juhannus” as the Finns would say. I wish to take this opportunity to thank President McKay again in behalf of the Finns, the Finnish members and those missionaries who were in Finland, for his visit during that time.

We remember that Finland always pays her debts. This is one thing that we as Americans remember. But do we as members of the Church know how that has been of benefit to the Church and to the Gospel? In 1948 Congress passed Public Law 265 in which all of the money that Finland pays on her war debt will be returned back to her in the form of scholarships and purchase of educational equipment. This gave the missionaries opportunity to hold English classes, to teach English, but primarily to teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Also, Sister Matis was asked to be the English examiner, which gave her the opportunity to contact many hundreds of Finnish citizens who have applied for these scholarships. Brethren, when we needed help the most, the Lord blessed us through the war debt that Finland owed the United States.

Probably little did President Brigham Young know when he sent the pioneers into Western Canada that his vision would assist the Finnish Mission. But, brethren, during the recent Korean War when very few missionaries were sent from the wards and stakes here in the United States, the missionaries from Canada saved the day for the Finnish Mission, as I am sure they did for other missions. The missionaries from Canada were a God-send to our little, young Finnish Mission.

In 1948, we had the opportunity of registering the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Finland, that is, to have the same status as any other church in that country. It gave us the opportunity of proselyting and of owning property in the name of the Church. It gave us the opportunity of printing literature and of holding meetings, but it also gave us the responsibility of keeping a register of all our Finnish members. Now, what did that mean, brethren? It meant that each member of another church who wanted to join the L.D.S. Church must go to his priest and say, “I want to be a Mormon.” This is necessary before baptism. You see that our baptisms were reduced, but the strength of our members and the testimonies of our members were increased. We received sincere members, humble members, but, brethren, best of all, the Finnish Saints cannot be like Nicodemus of old, who went to his Master by night. The Finnish Saint must go to his Master and Savior, Jesus Christ, openly.

Another very important blessing from our Father in Heaven to the Finnish Mission and to the people there was the microfilming program. When permission was given to microfilm, the blessings that resulted from that were beyond measure. I was grateful, brethren, that I received my own genealogy on my mother’s and father’s lineage back to 1600. But more important is the fact that I received a further testimony of the Lord’s goodness and of his plan in that one of my ancestors was the first Archbishop of Finland, Bishop Isak Rothevius. This Archbishop of the Lutheran Church began the keeping of Lutheran Church records, while I, his descendant, was instrumental in the microfilming of those same records.

Any story of the Finnish Mission, brethren, would not be complete unless I mentioned the names of Anders Johannsen and Loviisa Johannsen. This fine Swedish-speaking couple were the true Mormon pioneers in Finland. They joined the Church over seventy years ago. What is remarkable about this is that for about twenty-five years they had very little contact with the missionaries who came over from the Swedish Mission. Regardless of this loss of contact, they remained true and faithful to their covenants that they had made with their Heavenly Father in baptism. The descendants of Anders and Loviisa Johannsen were among that small group of Saints who met with Elder Benson in Larsmo on July 16, 1946, when he rededicated Finland to the preaching of the Gospel.

I bear testimony to you, brethren, that I know this Church is true. I know that Joseph Smith was and is a prophet of our Heavenly Father sent to restore the Gospel truths on this earth. I bear you my testimony that I know that God lives, and that he answers prayers. I bear testimony to you that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, the Redeemer of all mankind. I ask the Lord to bless you, to bless us during this Conference time and to bless his work throughout the world. I do this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Photograph: Henry A. and Mae Pace Matis